Stock Market & Financial Investment News

Pendrell unit: Court rejects attempts to limit scope of DRM patentsContentGuard Holdings, a subsidiary of Pendrell Corporation (PCO), announced that on Friday, March 20, Judge J. Rodney Gilstrap of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas issued a 144 page Claim Construction Order in lawsuits ContentGuard filed against several companies who continue to use its patented Digital Rights Management solutions without a license, including Apple (AAPL), Amazon.com (AMZN), DirecTV (DTV), Google (GOOG), HTC, Huawei, Motorola Mobility and Samsung Electronics (SSNLF). In his order, Judge Gilstrap interpreted the language in ContentGuard’s patents in a manner that fully preserves the breadth of ContentGuard’s patented Digital Rights Management technologies. These technologies were developed to enable the distribution of digital media over the Internet and other networks, including cellular and satellite networks, and provide innovative solutions to problems that were once thought to be unsolvable. “We are very pleased with the Court’s ruling,” commented James Baker, ContentGuard’s Vice President for Licensing and Strategic Development. “We believe these claim constructions demonstrate that the online stores defendants provide for buying and renting DRM-protected movies, videos, books, and music and devices that play, run, display or print this DRM-protected content infringe ContentGuard’s pioneering DRM patents.”

Google dives deeper into health data gathering, Financial Times reportsGoogle is diving deeper into the health sector, placing a series of bets that include Google Genomics and an investment in 23AndMe, reports the Financial Times. This comes after the company closed its Google Health division a few years ago and CEO Larry Page said regulations about the use of personal health data was holding back medical research. Reference Link

Analyst says Apple deserves higher multiple ahead of TV streaming forayGiven Apple's (AAPL) reported foray into streaming TV, the stock's multiple should be higher, Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty wrote in a note to investors today. WHAT'S NEW: Media reports about Apple's new streaming TV service support Morgan Stanley's thesis that the stock should trade at a multiple of 18x-19x, Morgan Stanley analyst Kate Huberty wrote in a note to investors today. Companies with content platforms trade at that level, on average, the analyst noted. Apple's stock is currently trading slightly below 15 times consensus 2015 profit estimates for the company. Noting that Apple has already announced a new online streaming deal with Time Warner's (TWX) HBO, and the New York Post reported that the tech giant is willing to share some viewership data with content owners, Huberty thinks that an Apple TV service seems to be more likely now than in past years. The analyst reiterated her belief, expressed in a previous note, that Apple should be compared to other companies that provide content platforms. Like other platform companies, Apple charges premium prices, its products are used every day by consumers, it has recurring revenue ,and it has the opportunity to expand its total market, the analyst stated. According to Huberty, TV is an $800B market, and the TV streaming market may be ready for prime time, as 20% of pay TV customers plan to cut the cord in the next year, a Morgan Stanley survey showed. The analyst kept a $160 price target and Overweight rating on the shares. WHAT'S NOTABLE: Taking a less favorable view of Apple on March 18 was research firm Jefferies, which predicted that the growth of the company's iPhones would decelerate further next quarter. The firm predicted that strong iPhone sales in China would propel the tech giants profit for the current quarter more than 10% above expectations, but it kept a Hold rating on the shares. PRICE ACTION: In early afternoon trading, Apple was fractionally higher near $128 per share.

Certain news agencies form advertising alliance to rival Google, others, BI saysThe Guardian, CNN International, The Financial Times , Reuters (TRI) and The Economist are forming an advertising alliance, called Pangaea, in hopes of rivaling Google (GOOG), Facebook (FB), Twitter (TWTR), and LinkedIn (LNKD), reports Business Insider UK. The Financial Times is owned by Pearson (PSO), The Economist Group is 50% owned by Pearson via The Financial Times, and CNN is owned by Time Warner (TWX). Reference Link

Safety standards for self-driving cars remain in flux, WSJ saysA 2012 California proposal to create safety standards for self-driving cars has yet to materialize because lawmakers, regulators, researchers, and government agencies do not know how to fully assess the technology, reports the Wall Street Journal. Google and other auto makers want to verify safety themselves, but law firm TroyGould and advocacy group Auto Reliability and Safety say third party testing is necessary, while a UC Berkeley transportation expert called the issue an "open question." The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration plans to test the technology "as it emerges... to inform future federal regulation," while the California DMV stated last week it's working quickly but doesn't want to release a premature ruling. Reference Link